13 Best Night Lights for Kids

Night lights are everyone’s new best friend, including ours. Whether we want a gentle glow for nighttime feedings and diaper changes or a dimmer one to soothe our sleepy babies, night lights for infants are a great option. After all, there’s no sense in getting frustrated in the dark when something as simple as a night light could solve everybody’s problem. Not only do they provide subtle illumination at night, but they also allow us to avoid glaring at bright overhead lights when soothing our babies, as well as stumbling over furniture due to the lack of light. It also doesn’t make sense to get frustrated in the dark for no reason when a simple night light could solve the problem. To that end, here are the best night lights for kids and children of all ages, providing them with soothing comfort as they wind down to sleep. 

Strawberry Lamp

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We begin with the Strawberry Lamp, a red-light-emitting lamp that has become one of the most important pieces of our newborn infant’s night routine. Crafted from silica gel and finished in baby-safe varnish, this night light emitted an array of red-light wavelengths that have been specifically designed to support babies in sleeping. What’s more, it came with three brightness levels, which we could choose using a quiet and simple touch control. During the early months with our kiddo, we would get up multiple times to change and feed her, leaving the lamp on all night. Moreover, we also loved being able to peer into the bassinet and check on the baby without having to use our blue-light-emitting smartphones.

Hooga Book Light

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Do you have a kiddo who loves reading so much that they read into the night? Then the Hooga Book Light is your best friend – and theirs. These nifty book lights could be clipped onto every level of our kiddos’ bunk beds. What’s more, we could even affix the light to a bedside table or a bathroom shelf, and even carry it from room to room, much like an yesteryear candlestick. The bottomline is that, the light was extremely portable, and we could even take it along when we travel. Not only does the amber hue keep the blue-light blues at bay, but also it doesn’t wake up other sleeping kiddos in the room when the other is reading. Plus, it made sure that our kids didn’t stare at screens!

Nanit Sound + Light Audio Monitor

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Most versatile. The Nanit Sound + Light Audio Monitor is a very unique device from the brand. Besides being a night light, it also is a clock, baby mintor, and could be controlled from the app. So, we could not only schedule wind-down and wake-up routines with custom sounds and colors, but we could also keep a close ear on our little one. We loved the complementing Nanit Sound and Light app, which gave us granular control over the complete-spectrum RBG control over the colors and the light’s brightness. So, we could actually design our kiddo’s perfect lighting setup in a matter of minutes. Since it’s so versatile, it’s no wonder that this unique product won the Silver Award at the 2024 Parenting Awards. Not only did we love the ease of managing the light’s settings through the app but it even helped the kiddos sleep better.

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Tommee Tippee Groclock

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Before the kiddos learned to tell the time, it was challenging when they would wake up in the middle of the night to see whether they should go back to sleep, get up, or turn over. Enter the Tommee Tippee Groclock, which offers a simple solution of being a clock and a night light all in one. Basically, the face of the clock is blue throughout the night, and when it’s time to rise, the face turns into a lovely orange shade. In fact, there’s an owl in the latest version, which is shown to be awake during the day and sleeping at night. The best bit? The stars in the light disappear one by one as morning approaches, and come out in full force and glow at night. Moreover, the Groclock also has an alarm function and can charge very easily via USB-A. Not just that, but also we could set separate times for weekends and weekdays, and we could even tweak the brightness, making it handy for a night-light.

Govee RGBIC Smart Night Light

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The Govee RGBIC Smart Night Light is one of the best portable night lights on this list. There are many things we loved about this night light, such as the wireless charging base, which meant we didn’t have to deal with a cord. What’s more, the light came with a whole bunch of relaxing modes that blend a number of lighting effects with sounds. Moreover, the night light also works as a Bluetooth speaker, which is ideal for streaming stories or music. Govee happens to be one of our favorite smart lighting brands, mostly due to its versatile app that allows us to pick premade scenes with animated lighting effects, choose from millions of colors, and even schedule lights. While some might feel that everything is crammed into the app, the versatility is impressive once we figure it out.

Cloud B Twilight Turtle

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The Cloud B Twilight Turtle is as entertaining a toy as it is a night light for kids. What makes it stand out is that it projects eight major constellations onto the ceiling and the walls of our kids’ nursery in various colors, such as amber, blue, and green, or all three! Designed to last, this durable night light survived a lot of roughhousing with kiddos and even toddlers. Not only was it portable, so we could take the astral projections everywhere, but it would also automatically shut off after 45 minutes, thus preserving the battery. We especially loved projections that would distract our babies during diaper changes. So, whether you use it to add to your child’s play, soothe your kid at bedtime, or entertain your baby during tummy time, this one will become a family favorite.

VTech Myla The Monkey Baby Sleep Soother

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Are you hitting the road and need a dual-purpose product that’s both a sound machine and a night light? Check out the VTech Myla The Monkey Baby Sleep Soother. This adorable monkey does it all, and that too in a travel-friendly size, which is what makes it such a must-buy, especially when you’re on the road. When it works as a night light, the monkey’s cheeks have a gentle light, which makes for a familiar glow that helps soothe our kiddos’ fears of the dark while also helping them fall asleep quickly when they’re away from home. Additionally, it can work in a variety of locations, thanks to the stretchable tail of the monkey that hooks around our baby’s car seat, a doorknob, or the stroller handle, making it very versatile. What’s more, we could even customize the light’s brightness via a button on the monkey’s tummy, and it even plays white noise and lullabies. Finally, we could also control the volume as well as choose to play the toy until the battery drains or put it on an auto-timer (60 minutes).

LumiPets Bear LED Night Light

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The LumiPets Bear LED Night Light is the perfect buddy for any kid, all wrapped up in an eye-catching, bear-shaped cuteness. Crafted from squishy, soft, and non-toxic silicone material that’s also free of phthalates, lead, latex, and BPA, this light is also the perfect adorable cuddly toy for kids to hold. Not only was it portable and rechargeable, but it also included a micro USB cord. We could operate it by tapping it and choosing one of nine colors of the color spectrum. Additionally, we could also use the remote control to select the same color options, as well as set the sleep timer to 15, 30, and 60 minutes, and adjust the brightness. The best bit? The remote control was very exciting and easy to use.

LittleHippo Mella

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The Little Hippo MELLA Children’s Night Light is widely raved about and is very popular with little kids and their parents, and for good reason. Firstly, we loved that the light doubled as a sound system and an alarm clock, making for an easy and fun-filled bedtime experience for the little ones. What’s more, the subtle colors helped us teach them when to wake up and when to wind down. Plus, it had three different sound options — including lullabies and white noise — as well as six color options, so we could tailor it to our kids’ preferences as we wanted. Moreover, the cute, round design instantly brought a smile to our kiddos’ faces, with the soft silicone build ensuring safety all the time.

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Pillow Pets Winnie-the-Pooh Plush Night Light

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Best plushie-cum-night light. Sometimes, children need some sort of engagement before they go to bed. So, what if we could combine two products into a single one? It’s a win-win, right? Behold the Pillow Pets Winnie-the-Pooh Plush Night Light, which is just that: one single product that achieves the feat. Designed as a well-thought-out night light, pillow, and plushie all in one, this product has not one but as many as three color modes. Moreover, it even had a projection light that would illuminate stars across the kiddos’ nursery ceiling, making it endlessly entertaining for them. Do note that the top part of the head is a hard portion, but the product mentions that explicitly.

Caroline’s Treasures BB8716CNL Moon Ceramic Night Light

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The Caroline’s Treasures BB8716CNL Moon Ceramic Night Light is a very cute night light that has made all the difference in our kiddo’s adorable nursery. This night light checked all the boxes: it was handcrafted from ceramics and hand-painted with care. The style was nostalgic and whimsical, adding charm to the kiddos’ nursery space with its soft, warm glow. What’s more, we loved the on/off switch, which ensured that the light would only stay illuminated when our kids or we wanted it, rather than sensor or motion lights that would disrupt sleep patterns. The price might be a bit steep for a night light, but according to us, it’s a great addition.

Hatch Rest 2nd Gen All-in-one Sleep Machine

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Best features. Do you like bells and whistles — and then some — when it comes to night lights? You can’t beat the Hatch Rest 2nd Gen All-in-one Sleep Machine. After nearly a year of using it, we found that all the bonus features really do make it worth every extra penny. Like many other smart lamps, this Hatch one could also be customized and controlled from our smartphones. What’s more, we could choose from a wide array of colors, including brighter hues like green and blue, red (great for middle-of-the-night wakeups), and even soft yellow. If that wasn’t enough, we loved that it had an extensive selection of sounds that we could play to soothe the babies, whether it was white noise, ambient sounds, stories, or lullabies. Did we mention that it could even play recordings from family members? Yes! All these features made it especially great for babies’ and kids’ rooms, although the sleek design and customization make it great for shared spaces and adults’ rooms as well. 

“We could even automate the lamp to turn on at a specific time or even run through routines. Plus, we could control everything from the brightness to the volume, thanks to the easy touch sensor at the top.” 

Keedoz

Globe Electric LED Whale Automatic Dusk to Dawn Plug-In Kids Night Light

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Best overall. Sitting at the top of the list is the Globe Electric LED Whale Automatic Dusk to Dawn Plug-In Kids Night Light. This oh-so-cute and squishy whale-shaped night light instantly added joy to our baby’s nursery and kids’ rooms. There were many things we loved about this whale light, starting with the fact that it was small in size and came with a rechargeable battery. Hence, we could easily move it around from room to room, and we could even take it along with us for travels and family visits. Since the product was crafted from BPA-free silicone, it was not only safe but also squishy and soft. Another extremely fun feature about this whale toy that we loved was its color-changing capabilities, which we could do so by simply touching the whale’s head. So, we could choose from a wide range of illumination hues according to what our kids liked. Since the battery life was 4 hours, all we had to do was leave the light on and plugged in during the night, which really wasn’t such a hassle.

Our Verdict!

While we loved all the night lights for kiddos on this list, we’ve drawn up this specialized list to help you choose what you want.

• Most versatile: Nanit Sound + Light Audio Monitor
• Best plushie-cum-night light: Pillow Pets Winnie-the-Pooh Plush Night Light
• Best features: Hatch Rest 2nd Gen All-in-one Sleep Machine
• Best overall: Globe Electric LED Whale Automatic Dusk to Dawn Plug-In Kids Night Light

How To Choose The Best Night Lights For Kids?

Customizable Features

Just like some candle warmer lamps and book lights, the freedom to be able to adjust our night light’s brightness and color is handy. It’s even more so if one is sensitive to features like glare or cool-white light, including the fact that it might bother little infants and kids. Moreover, some night lights even come with adaptive brightness technology that adjusts the color and brightness based on the ambient light in the space, allowing you to save energy and money in the long run. Furthermore, there are many other products with a wide choice of light colors, so we could change it to our kids’ preferred hue, whether warm yellow for relaxation or light blue in the middle of the night.

Portable

If night lights can be transported from room to room, then they’re extra special. Portability is important, especially if one has babies or younger kids. What’s more, the portable night lights we’ve invested in have been extremely helpful when we’ve traveled and stayed in unfamiliar settings, so we haven’t tripped over furniture accidentally in the middle of the night. So, look for night lights that can simply be plugged into the wall or have rechargeable power sources.

Smart Features

Smart night lights can greatly enhance the bedtime experience for kids, especially since it’s the era of Google Home and Alexa. Incidentally, some products are even compatible with smart home systems, including having features like voice control compatibility with smart assistants like Google Assistant and Alexa. So, we could easily adjust and customize the night light without having to move from our place, especially when dealing with infants and babies. Moreover, many night lights even come with their own integrated smart features.

Ambiance

Night lights today are more than just the classic stand-alone light. Many come with various light modes so you can set the desired ambiance of your space. For example, our best pick for teens, the Allsop Moon Light, includes 16 colors to cycle through with the remote.

If you can’t choose from various colors, we prefer a warm white illumination, like the Pottery Barn Kids Ceramic Moon Nightlight, our best pick for nurseries. We find cool white light to be a bit overwhelming at times, like our best budget option, the Westek Manual Switch LED Night Light, but it’s definitely helpful for waking you up in the morning.

Also check out the best burp cloths for babies, the best crib mattresses for babies, and the best sleep sacks for babies.

Why do kids need a night light?

Some kids genuinely fear the darkness, which could cause them significant distress. In such cases, dim night lights could provide great comfort during the night, helping kids feel secure enough to fall asleep.

Do night lights affect kids’ sleep?

Yes, while night lights can significantly impact the quality of sleep for kids, it all boils down to the kind of light one uses, its colors, and its brightness levels.